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Old 08-14-2014, 10:33 AM   #11
Otaku
 
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Default Re: Size Modifiers

Personal experience certainly matters, and I like the suggestions that build should apply. Why? I'm about 5'11" (180.34 cm) tall... but I'm also 480 lbs. (morbidly obese, but also a large frame underneath it). Based on a pseudo-reality check e.g. anecdotal experience I think I qualify as SM+1. Its possible that I really am still below GURPS SM resolution so that in game terms, the difference is negligible, but build really should be a factor.
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Old 08-14-2014, 11:12 AM   #12
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Default Re: Size Modifiers

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Originally Posted by Darsken View Post
Before anyone attacks me for thread necromancy: It's better than starting a new thread!

I wanted to add a note to help other GMS: I am 6'6". Trust me, it's SM +1. I walk a lot faster than most people, I get hit (by doors) a lot more often, and clothes are more expensive / harder to find. For all intents and purposes, I would make a 6'6" a SM +1, if the average height is ~6' or less.
Gigantism doesn't include any of the health problems. So there is no reason not to take it for people that are just really tall.

Last edited by sir_pudding; 08-14-2014 at 12:53 PM.
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Old 08-14-2014, 12:47 PM   #13
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Default Re: Size Modifiers

With how SM dictates food/water requirements, I prefer to use mass rather than merely one linear dimension. Human cultures are obsessed with height as a sign of power, masculinity, and force of presence.

To hit bonuses should scale with cross sectional surface area, which is unlikely to change much with tall humans as they tend to be rather slender comparatively.
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Old 08-14-2014, 12:51 PM   #14
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Default Re: Size Modifiers

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With how SM dictates food/water requirements,
According the rule in Bio-Tech or is there a more general rule that I'm forgetting?
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Old 08-14-2014, 12:54 PM   #15
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Default Re: Size Modifiers

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Originally Posted by sir_pudding View Post
According the rule in Bio-Tech or is there a more general rule that I'm forgetting?
That rule clarifies it for more realistic characters. But how else would you determine how much a creature eats and drinks if not by SM?

I certainly think a 450 pound 6' tall man eats more than a 250 pound 7' tall man. As well as having a greater cross sectional surface area for a to hit bonus.
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Old 08-14-2014, 12:55 PM   #16
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Default Re: Size Modifiers

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Originally Posted by Flyndaran View Post
With how SM dictates food/water requirements, I prefer to use mass rather than merely one linear dimension. Human cultures are obsessed with height as a sign of power, masculinity, and force of presence.
However, basal metabolic rate doesn't scale linearly with mass but with mass^0.75 (with considerable variation).
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Old 08-14-2014, 12:56 PM   #17
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Default Re: Size Modifiers

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Originally Posted by Otaku View Post
Personal experience certainly matters, and I like the suggestions that build should apply. Why? I'm about 5'11" (180.34 cm) tall... but I'm also 480 lbs. (morbidly obese, but also a large frame underneath it). Based on a pseudo-reality check e.g. anecdotal experience I think I qualify as SM+1. Its possible that I really am still below GURPS SM resolution so that in game terms, the difference is negligible, but build really should be a factor.
Width does play a role in GURPS SM - a square or sphere uses its linear dimension +2 for SM, something more rectangular is +1. That's why dwarves in DF and similar are typically SM +0 - they're short enough to qualify for SM -1, but they are a lot stockier/wider than a comparable human would be.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Flyndaran View Post
With how SM dictates food/water requirements, I prefer to use mass rather than merely one linear dimension. Human cultures are obsessed with height as a sign of power, masculinity, and force of presence.

To hit bonuses should scale with cross sectional surface area, which is unlikely to change much with tall humans as they tend to be rather slender comparatively.
Yeah, mass is probably a better bet. Heck, it's what Spaceships uses anyway. Tall humans do tend to be heavier, of course, but typically not anywhere close to +1 SSR heavier!
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Old 08-14-2014, 04:54 PM   #18
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Default Re: Size Modifiers

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Yeah, mass is probably a better bet.
There's actually a reasonable argument for using ST -- the metabolic costs of labor are largely a function of how much labor you do, which is based on ST, and even if not engaged in labor, more muscle gives a higher basic metabolic rate.
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Old 08-14-2014, 06:10 PM   #19
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Default Re: Size Modifiers

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Originally Posted by Flyndaran View Post
That rule clarifies it for more realistic characters. But how else would you determine how much a creature eats and drinks if not by SM?
I don't know. It's actually something that I'm struggling with. Dungeon Fantasy 13: Loadouts says that rations don't scale with size, but rather just provide more or less meals, but I'm not sure what that is supposed to mean without the rule from Bio-Tech (which I've found very difficult to implement in actual play anyway) which is probably not appropriate for DF. I was hoping there was another (simpler/less realistic) rule that I'm missing somewhere.
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Old 08-14-2014, 06:58 PM   #20
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Default Re: Size Modifiers

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Originally Posted by Varyon View Post
Width does play a role in GURPS SM - a square or sphere uses its linear dimension +2 for SM, something more rectangular is +1. That's why dwarves in DF and similar are typically SM +0 - they're short enough to qualify for SM -1, but they are a lot stockier/wider than a comparable human would be.
True, but I got the impression they weren't talking humanoids that vaguely resembled those shapes. I may be big, but I am not a sphere. ;)
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